Revelations printed in Evening and Morning Star, January 1835–June 1836

have in
abundance, but it is not given that one man
should possess that which is above another:
wherefore the world lieth in sin: and wo be
unto man that sheddeth blood or that
wasteth flesh and hath no need.

And again,
verily I say unto you, that the Son of man
cometh not in the form of a woman, neither
of a man travelling on the earth:
wherefore be not deceived, but continue in
steadfastness, looking forth for the heavens
to be shaken: and the earth to tremble, and
to reel to and fro as a drunken man; and
for the valleys to be exalted; and for the
mountains to be made low; and for the
rough places to become smooth: and all
this when the angel shall sound his trumpet.

But before the great day of the Lord
shall come, Jacob shall flourish in the wilderness;
and the Lamanites

A term used in the Book of Mormon to refer to the descendants or followers of Laman, as well as those who later identified themselves as Lamanites because they did not believe in the religious traditions of their ancestors. According to JS and the Book of...

A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...

shall flourish upon the
hills, and rejoice upon the mountains, and
shall be assembled together unto the place
which I have apointed. Behold I say unto
you, go forth as I have commanded

Generally, a divine mandate that church members were expected to obey; more specifically, a text dictated by JS in the first-person voice of Deity that served to communicate knowledge and instruction to JS and his followers. Occasionally, other inspired texts...

you;
repent of all your sins; ask and ye shall
receive; knock and it shall be opened unto
you: behold I will go before you, and be
your re-reward; and I will be in your midst, and you shall not be confounded: behold I
am Jesus Christ, and I come quickly; Even
so. Amen. [p. 94]

have in
abundance, but it is not given that one man
should possess that which is above another:
wherefore the world lieth in sin: and wo be
unto man that sheddeth blood or that
wasteth flesh and hath no need.

And again,
verily I say unto you, that the Son of man
cometh not in the form of a woman, neither
of a man travelling on the earth:
wherefore be not deceived, but continue in
steadfastness, looking forth for the heavens
to be shaken: and the earth to tremble, and
to reel to and fro as a drunken man; and
for the valleys to be exalted; and for the
mountains to be made low; and for the
rough places to become smooth: and all
this when the angel shall sound his trumpet.

But before the great day of the Lord
shall come, Jacob shall flourish in the wilderness;
and the Lamanites

A term used in the Book of Mormon to refer to the descendants or followers of Laman, as well as those who later identified themselves as Lamanites because they did not believe in the religious traditions of their ancestors. According to JS and the Book of...

A specific location in Missouri; also a literal or figurative gathering of believers in Jesus Christ, characterized by adherence to ideals of harmony, equality, and purity. In JS’s earliest revelations “the cause of Zion” was used to broadly describe the ...

shall flourish upon the
hills, and rejoice upon the mountains, and
shall be assembled together unto the place
which I have apointed. Behold I say unto
you, go forth as I have commanded

Generally, a divine mandate that church members were expected to obey; more specifically, a text dictated by JS in the first-person voice of Deity that served to communicate knowledge and instruction to JS and his followers. Occasionally, other inspired texts...

you;
repent of all your sins; ask and ye shall
receive; knock and it shall be opened unto
you: behold I will go before you, and be
your re-reward; and I will be in your midst, and you shall not be confounded: behold I
am Jesus Christ, and I come quickly; Even
so. Amen. [p. 94]

JS revelations, dated 20 July and 1 Aug. 1831, directed establishment of LDS church’s first printing office in Independence, Missouri. Dedicated by Bishop Edward Partridge, 29 May 1832. Located on Lot 76, on Liberty Street just south of courthouse square....

Located twelve miles from western Missouri border. Permanently settled, platted, and designated county seat, 1827. Hub for steamboat travel on Missouri River. Point of departure for Santa Fe Trail. Population in 1831 about 300. Mormon population by summer...

Vigilantes, demanding removal of Latter-day Saints from Jackson County, Missouri, destroyed printing office and tarred and feathered Edward Partridge and Charles Allen, Independence, Jackson County, Missouri; a few dozen copies of unfinished Book of Commandments...

and publication efforts there were permanently halted, printing commenced on
a newly acquired press in Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and 1,000 others; in 1838 about 2,000 Saints and 1,200 others; in 1839 about 100 Saints and 1,500 others. Mormon missionaries visited township...

A firm established by the United Firm on 11 September 1833 to print newspapers in Kirtland, Ohio. In December 1833, F. G. Williams & Co. resumed the interrupted printing of the church newspaper The Evening and the Morning Star. After the United Firm was reorganized...

,
continued printing The Evening and the Morning Star, the newspaper begun in Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Mormon missionaries...

The first issue of the reprinted newspaper, which appeared under the slightly modified
title Evening and Morning Star, was published in January 1835.2

The title that appears in the newspaper’s nameplate was likely shortened because of a reduction in
the newspaper’s size. The longer original title, The Evening and the Morning Star, is printed at the middle
and end of each issue with other publication information. For the sake of clarity, the reprinted paper is
referred to by its shortened title for all references in The Joseph Smith Papers.

Though touted as a reprint
that would correct typographical and other errors,3

Evening and Morning Star actually
contained significant changes to the revelation texts. In the first issue, editor Oliver Cowdery

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

explained the revisions he was making in the reprinted versions of the
revelations:

On the revelations we merely say, that we were not a little surprised to find the
previous print so different from the original. We have given them a careful
comparison, assisted by individuals whose known integrity and ability is
uncensurable. Thus saying we cast no reflections upon those who were entrusted
with the responsibility of publishing them in Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Mormon missionaries...

, as our own labors were
included in that important service to the church, and it was our unceasing
endeavor to have them correspond with the copy furnished us. We believe they are
now correct. If not in every word, at least in principle.4

Notice, Evening and Morning Star, June 1832 (Jan. 1835), 16. The prospectus to Evening and Morning
Star also states “that in the first 14 numbers, in the Revelations, are many errors, typographical, and others,
occasioned by transcribing manuscript; but as we shall have access to originals, we shall endeavor to
make proper corrections.” (“Prospectus,” The Evening and the Morning Star, Sept. 1834, 192.)

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

’s statement, very few of the changes in the reprint
represent a restoration back to the earliest text, though Cowdery consulted early manuscript
sources when reprinting some of the revelations.5

On 4 February 1835, Cowdery wrote to Newel K. Whitney requesting that the latter send “the original
copy of the Revelation given to 12 elders Feb. 1831 called ‘The Law of the Church.’” Cowdery
explained, “We are preparing the old Star for re-printing, and have no copy from which to correct, and
kno[w] of no other beside yours.” (Oliver Cowdery, Kirtland, OH, to Newel K. Whitney, 4 Feb. 1835,
Newel K. Whitney, Papers, BYU.)

Because the revelations were meant
to be used as a guide for the current operations of the church, they were edited in 1835 to
reflect current organization, doctrine, and practice, which had continued to develop since
the revelations were first dictated. For example, the version of a 9 February 1831 revelation
printed in Evening and Morning Star includes discussion of the duties of elders, priests,
teachers, bishops, high priests, and the high council.6

Revelation, 9 Feb. 1831, in “Extract of Covenants for the Church of the Latter Day Saints,” Evening
and Morning Star, July 1832 (Feb. 1835), 30–31 [D&C 42].

The revelation was
revised in 1835 to reflect these additional roles. Most of the changes made to revelations in
the early issues of Evening and Morning Star are also reflected in the same revelations as
published in the first edition of the Doctrine and Covenants (1835), and the editing work on
that volume, in turn, influenced the presentation of revelations in later issues of Evening
and Morning Star.9

The table that follows lists each of the revelatory
items printed in the Star and its reprint, along with its bibliographic information. See Revelations Printed in The Evening and the Morning Star for a side-by-side comparison of the revelations printed in the Star and its reprint.

Key to column titles

Vol:Issue:

Volume and issue number

Star Print Date:

Month in which the item was printed in The Evening and the Morning Star

Star Pages:

Pages on which the item was printed in The Evening and the Morning Star

Reprint Print Date:

Month in which the item was printed in Evening and Morning Star

Reprint Pages:

Pages on which the item was printed in Evening and Morning Star

Date:

Date of item, followed by section number in Doctrine and Covenants, 1981 edition, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and 1,000 others; in 1838 about 2,000 Saints and 1,200 others; in 1839 about 100 Saints and 1,500 others. Mormon missionaries visited township...

3 Oct. 1806–3 Mar. 1850. Clerk, teacher, justice of the peace, lawyer, newspaper editor. Born at Wells, Rutland Co., Vermont. Son of William Cowdery and Rebecca Fuller. Raised Congregationalist. Moved to western New York and clerked at a store, ca. 1825–1828...

. The copy used for this transcription is currently part of a bound
volume held at CHL; includes marginalia and archival notations.

Evening and Morning Star, an edited reprint of The Evening and the Morning Star, presents revelations
throughout its first thirteen issues, except for the April 1833 issue, which was printed in June 1836.
When printing Evening and Morning Star, the editors revised the revelations found in The Evening and
the Morning Star, changing wording and sometimes order and position on the page. One revelation
printed in the earlier newspaper was not reprinted in this edition of the paper.1

Revelation,16 Apr. 1830, in “The Articles and Covenants of the Church of Christ,” The Evening and
the Morning Star,June 1832, [1]–[2] [D&C 22].

The page size of Evening
and Morning Star was smaller than that of its predecessor. Each issue has eight leaves (sixteen pages),
with two columns on each page, each page measuring 9¼ × 5¾ inches (23 × 15 cm). Because Evening
and Morning Star was a reprint, its issues maintained the dating of the original issues; thus, the first
issue of Evening and Morning Star is dated June 1832, though it was printed in January 1835, as indicated
by a publisher’s notice on the last page of the issue.

The original owner of the volume used for this transcription is unknown. The upper right corner
of the second free endsheet is cut away, and based on a residual ink flourish on the recto near the cut, it appears that a signature was removed from the book at some point. This volume is held at the Church
History Library, but its provenance is unknown.

Facts

Editorial Title

Revelations printed in Evening and Morning Star, January 1835–June 1836